In a small grove, Uchiha Shūnen looked coldly at the people around him. "Tell me, how many of you knew about this?"
The delinquents looked at one another. It was their first time seeing Boss Shūnen this angry.
They still vividly remembered what had happened to that second-year student who had carelessly run his mouth before.
"Cough, cough, Boss, it's just a bunch of bored brats gossiping. There's no need to..."
One delinquent stepped forward to calm him down, but before he could finish, Shūnen's vicious glare frightened him into swallowing the rest of his words.
"Those bastards can insult me, but the Uchiha Clan's honor must never be profaned!"
Profaned? Isn't it the truth? The delinquents grumbled inwardly, but their words were righteously indignant. "That's right! The Uchiha Clan founded Leaf Village. Whether in history or heritage, the Sarutobi Clan can't possibly compare!"
Hearing that, Shūnen felt slightly comforted. "Good. Come with me now and find trouble with that Asuma Sarutobi!"
"Wait, Boss Shūnen, calm down!"
"Boss Shūnen, don't go!"
The delinquents desperately tried to stop him. If they had initially entertained the idea of carrying their "tradition" down to the First Years, then after two months of observation, they had long since abandoned it.
Not to mention those two monster-level newcomers—their terrifying unity alone was enough to make them shudder.
They were outnumbered seven or eight to one. How were they supposed to fight?
Shūnen's expression darkened. "What do you mean? Do you think I can't even handle a newcomer two years below me?"
"Of course not. That Asuma Sarutobi is nothing." The delinquents tried earnestly to dissuade him. "But there are too many of them!"
At those words, Shūnen's face instantly turned the color of pig liver.
They had always been the ones bullying others with superior numbers, yet now the situation had somehow reversed.
"I don't care! I have to let those bastards know that the Uchiha are the strongest clan!" Shūnen roared loudly, sounding rather simple-minded.
Here it comes again! The delinquents wailed inwardly. But they knew their boss had perfectly inherited the Uchiha Clan's mule-headed stubbornness. Once he made up his mind, not even nine tailed beasts could pull him back.
"Actually, it's not like there's no way," the strategist among the delinquents muttered softly.
"Spit it out."
"That Asuma Sarutobi isn't particularly well-liked among those newcomers. It's only because of Shimizu Soseki that they've been brought together."
"So, we deal with Shimizu Soseki first?" Shūnen asked, resting one hand beneath his chin.
"Absolutely not! Shimizu Soseki's reputation among the First Years is far too high. If we touch him, those freshmen will definitely fight us to the death!" The strategist nearly broke out in a cold sweat.
Shūnen asked impatiently, "Then what exactly are you trying to say?"
Rubbing his hands together, the strategist chuckled. "I mean, we separate those fringe figures bit by bit."
Shūnen's eyes lit up. "Explain."
"Those newcomers weren't united to begin with. As long as we declare that we'll only target the unpopular ones among them, the other newcomers will be more than happy to see those misfits suffer. Then, we can gradually split them into several groups. By then, forget standing up for others—they might even start fighting among themselves!"
"Wow, that's really despicable. But... I like it!"
During history class, Yagami Kei gave an impassioned explanation.
"The Ninja Academy system was precisely the Second Hokage's innovation. Not only did this system cultivate a great number of talents for Leaf Village, it also eased the conflicts between Clan Ninja and civilian ninja to a certain extent. It was therefore imitated by ninja villages across every nation and had an extremely far-reaching impact on the Shinobi World. It would not be an exaggeration to say that it changed the entire structure of the Shinobi World."
"But do you know the most important elements in establishing the Ninja Academy?"
Yet below him, some students were sleeping, chatting, or fooling around. Hardly anyone was seriously listening to his lecture.
Faced with this situation, Yagami Kei could only bring out his trump card. "Soseki, answer this."
Very quickly, the girls in the class instantly perked up. Seeing this, Yagami Kei could not help feeling a little sour. If I were twenty years younger, I might not be any less charming than Soseki.
"It was Basic Education, Graduation Gifts, and Guidance Squads." Soseki stood up and analyzed the matter seriously. "During the Warring States period, although every major ninja clan had its own Ninjutsu and secret techniques in which it excelled, they found it difficult to provide sufficient training for clan members in areas they did not specialize in. This caused many talented ninja to be buried because they chose the wrong path. After entering the era of ninja villages, comprehensive Basic Education could guide large numbers of trainee ninja and prevent talent from being wasted."
"As for the large ninja clans with more complete educational resources, the Graduation Gifts were the greater attraction that drew them into the academy. Even for major clans, high-level Ninjutsu of B-rank and above was difficult to obtain, let alone high-level Ninjutsu of precisely the attribute that suited them."
"As for the Guidance Squad system, it greatly reduced the risk of casualties among rookie ninja and allowed them to grow quickly. More than that, Guidance Squads also served to some extent as a link between civilian ninja and Clan Ninja, allowing the various classes that had once been separated by barriers to blend together."
Yagami Kei nodded approvingly and asked again, "The other major ninja villages have also been imitating our system, but do you know why their educational results fall so far short of Leaf Village's?"
This time, without waiting for anyone to answer, Yagami Kei continued on his own. "There were actually many reasons, but in my view, the greatest reason was the Second Hokage's contribution. Over the course of his life, the Second Hokage created countless Ninjutsu and Forbidden Jutsu. Many of them were even only half-finished, but these Ninjutsu greatly enriched our Ninjutsu library, ensuring that our students would not be unable to see a path forward when choosing their future. This is something the other major ninja villages will never be able to catch up with."
"Wow! The Second Hokage was actually that amazing?"
"After class, I'm going to become the Second Hokage!"
Seeing this, Yagami Kei felt immensely gratified.
In Leaf Village, the Second Hokage occupied a rather awkward position.
The First Hokage founded Leaf Village and ended the Warring States period, so naturally his prestige far surpassed that of the Second Hokage. And now, during the Third Hokage's rule, all manner of achievements being promoted naturally overshadowed the Second Hokage's as well. As a result, many children had never even heard of the Second Hokage. To Yagami Kei, a Second Hokage fan, this was simply intolerable!
After his moment of satisfaction, Yagami Kei continued, "Although you can exchange contribution points for high-level Ninjutsu after graduation, that won't be easy. In a sense, the high-level Ninjutsu you choose as your graduation gift may be the only high-level Ninjutsu you possess for a long time after graduating."
"Choosing B-rank Ninjutsu as your graduation gift will allow you to pass through the lower and middle ninja stages relatively smoothly, but the price is that you will need to spend more effort when exchanging for A-rank Ninjutsu later. If you choose A-rank Ninjutsu as your graduation gift, however, you may lack any high-level Ninjutsu that can serve as a trump card until you become jonin!"
"Although graduation is still far away for you, you can start thinking about it in advance. Consider this your homework after class. Now, class dismissed."
Before you continue